Preventing erosion in steam-turbines.



`oNrrEn sTArEs PATENT oEEioE.

' RICHARD H. RICE, OF LYNN, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR T0 GENERAL ELECTRICCOMPANY, A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK..

PREVENTING- EROSION IN STEAM-TURBINES.

To all whom t may concern:

Be it known that I, RioHARD H. Riou, a citizen of the` United States,residing at Lynn, county of Essex, State of Massachusetts, haveinventedcertain new and useful Improvements in Preventing Erosion inSteam-Turbines, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to elastic fluid turbines, and its object is toprevent the injury caused by erosion adjacent to the intermediatebuckets. The steam passing through the turbine carries more or lesswater, and this is: thrown by centrifugal force from the ends of therotating buckets. The water impinges upon the wall of the casing andmakes its way into the joints between the shanks of the intermediatebuckets and their socketsV inv said wall. The velocity of the particlesof water causes rapid erosion of the parts against which it strikes,while the acids in the water tend to corrode said parts and rust theintermediates in their sockets, so that it becomes diiiicult to removethem. My invent-ion aims to avoid these troubles by providing theintermediates with a wide base to cover the joint and by giving thesides of said base an easy concave curve, so that the water will bediverted away from the joint. Moreover I make this base of a materialresistant At0 the corrosive and erosive action of the water, such asnickel bronze or monel metal.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure l is a sectional view of a portionof a turbine casing and a bucket wheel, and an interj mediate embodyingmy invention, and Fig.

2 is a section at right anglesI to Fig. l, on a smaller scale. f

The bucket wheel l is shown provided with two rows of buckets 2 betweenwhich are the intermediate buckets 3 mounted on the casing 4f. Theintermediates have a widev base d5' made of extruded metalg nickelbronze, monel metal, or the lik-e, extending far enough on each side tocatch all the water thrown 'oft' b f the wheel buckets 2. The base alsoexten s well beyond the rab- Specicaton of Letters Patent.

Application led September 7, 1912. Serial No. 719,097.

' Patenteaiuay envie.

beted joint 6 by which it is united to the casing 4, being fastened inplace by screws 7. To prevent sudden impact of the water particles, andlessen the erosive effect, the sides of the base are formed with aconcave curve 8 of considerabie radius, so that the water will bediverted easily and gradually away from the joint and into a' directionsubstantially parallel with the Walls of the casing.

In accordance with the provisions of the patent statutes, I havedescribed the principle of operation of my invention, together with theapparatus which I now consider to represent the best'embcdimen'tthereof, but I desire to have it understood that the apparatus shown isonly illustrative, and that the invention can be carried out by othermeans.

What I claim as new and d esire to secure by Letters Patent of theUnited States, is,-

l. An intermediate bucket for a steam turbine having a base providedwith curved sides to divert the water coming from the wheel buckets.

2. An intermediate bucket for a steam turbine having a base wide enoughlto receive the water coming from two adjacent rows of wheel buckets,and concavely curved to divert said water.

3. In a steam turbine, intermediate buckets united to the casing by arabbeted joint and having a wide base to protect said joint from theerosive and corrosive effects of water thrown oif by the wheel buckets.

4. In a steam turbine, intermedia-te buck! ets united to the casing by arabbeted joint and having a wide base to protect said joint from theerosive and corrosive eifects of water thrown off by the wheel buckets,said basehaving its sides concavely curved to di# vert said water. i jIn witness'whereof, I have hereunto set my hand thisiifth day ofSeptember, 1912. f

. RICHARD H. RICE.

Writnesses f

